PC-3 human prostatic tumor sublines have been previously isolated which exhibit striking differences in their invasive and metastatic phenotypes. This work has been extended here to measure and compare the levels of kinesin, a microtubule-dependent translocator molecule, in the PC-3 sublines. Western blots, slot blots, radiolabeling, and immunoprecipitation analysis showed that kinesin was expressed in the highly invasive and metastatic sublines at levels which were elevated above the base-line levels observed in the parent PC-3 cells. In comparison, kinesin was not expressed in detectable amounts in the noninvasive cell lines. The conditioned medium of the metastatic PC-3 sublines contained a heat- and trypsin-sensitive protein which exhibited a dosage-dependent capacity to stimulate increased kinesin expression, type IV collagenase secretion, and invasion of Matrigel by the metastatic sublines. The noninvasive sublines failed to secrete a similar stimulatory factor(s) or respond to the conditioned medium of metastatic sublines. Various growth factors and cytokines tested (platelet-derived growth factor, epidermal growth factor, insulin-like growth factor, formylmethionineleucinephenylalanine) had no significant effect on either kinesin expression or protease secretion and invasion. Pertussis toxin blocked the stimulatory effects of the conditioned medium, but other agents known to interfere with adenylate cyclase pathways (i.e., cholera toxin, forskolin, 8-bromoadenosine) failed to block stimulation. The data show for the first time that kinesin, protease secretion, and the resulting invasion process may be regulated in a coordinated manner by an autocrine factor(s) which activates G-protein-dependent processes.

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©1991 American Association for Cancer Research.
1991
American Association for Cancer Research, Inc.
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